Fantastic times at PPG meeting in Taumarunui
Submitted by eva on Fri, 15/04/2011 - 10:25.
Evan flying low: photo by Marty Taylor mardtaylor@gmail.com
The first Wings & Waves PPG fly-in was a great success: 15 pilots made the trip from all over the North Island to Taumarunui last weekend. This is the record number of PPG pilots to ever meet in NZ. We stayed at the local holiday park with camp owners Phil and Helene (also keen PG pilots) proving to be perfect hosts, right down to wheeling in an outdoor fireplace already fired up for our beer, barbeque and bullshit session on Saturday night.
A chat with local aero club pilots Kevin and Jeanette on Friday afternoon secured us the use of the airport and facilities: Plenty of space for 15 pilots (and more), great facilities, great support.
15 petrol heads: Wings & Waves PPG meeting in Taumarunui April 2011
Early fog on Saturday gave us a good excuse to stay in bed for a while but we decided that a 9 o'clock start would give us time to set up gear and be ready to fly when it cleared. By 10 o'clock we had clear skies, no wind and a perfect day. Then the entertainment started as all the coastal pilots who are used to launching in at least 10km of wind, tried to get to grips with forward launching in nil wind. One way or the other, eventually, everyone got airborne successfully with a little help from other pilots and our wing fluffers Janice and Chrissy.
Taumarunui Airfield
The day was spent sightseeing around the local area and playing in the airfield with stick kicking, helium balloon chasing, and general aviation antics. The back drop of a snow topped Mt Ruapehu and the novelty of flying with a big group of other PPGs made aerial photography one of the most popular activities of the day. Petrol heads can’t help comparing gear and this was a perfect opportunity to indulge in a bit of “you show me yours and I’ll show you mine”. Ros motors were the most common followed by Parajet and despite having some of the highest hours all had run perfectly since new. Some of the unfortunate owners of other machines had major failures in less than 20 hours use. It also became apparent that the differences in cage quality, even the netting makes a big difference to the protection of the unit, as well as the easy to use. Different suppliers offer different levels of support and service - all very important in the long run. It gave me lots of confidence that we have made good choices in what we recommend to our pilots.
Approaching National Park - for coffees
When it came to wings the real differences came out on Sunday when we did our cross country flight. The day was calm again with a cloud cover that stopped any thermal activity. As a long time PG pilot that would have been bad news to me once. But with the motor, these were perfect conditions for silky smooth air and a relaxed flight over some wonderful scenery. We all loaded up with max fuel load and waddled in to the sky for a trip to National Park. The cloud cover stopped us making a grand tour of Mt Ruapehu, so we landed for a coffee and then made the return trip. With a 10km head wind the speed differences really started to show up, so the Airflex pilots had time to do some sightseeing, have lunch, take a toilet stop and still catch up. OK maybe a slight exaggeration but the overall impression is, they are fast. Fuel capacity became an issue for some who had to find a landing place on the way and get picked up by our retrieve drivers. Thanks to Shane’s dad John, to Chrissy and James and Janice for following us around and to Stew for the use of his truck, barbecue, caravan and flame thrower. ( I can’t explain that last one, you have to see it).
Inflating for take-off: photo by Marty Taylor mardtaylor@gmail.com
The next W&W paramotor meeting will be held in June up North. Please get in touch by email in order to get onto our mailing list if you are interested in joining us!
Last word goes to Marty who sent me this. “Awesome time, Expelled some demons, I’m inspired again. Thanks for a blissful day.”
Article by Evan Lamberton. Evan is one of Wings & Waves' PPG instructor, who has taught the majority of new PPG pilots and organised the event. Please contact us if you interested in future events, paramotor equipment or training.
Several photos by Marty Taylor. Marty offers professional aerial photography services - from his PPG. He can be contacted on mardtaylor@gmail.com or 0226-502-098.
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